An IFLA delegation made up of representatives from Argentina, South Africa, Namibia, Oman, Georgia and the United States made the most of the 2024 High-Level Political Forum to build connections and get people thinking about how libraries can contribute to the SDGs.

Four people in front of a UN logo and flag
Members of the IFLA delegation (l-r): Saif Al Jabri, Alejandro Santa, Manutenya Malwaalwa, Kepi Madumo

At a time that the United Nations is increasingly focused on different aspects of the role of information and knowledge in driving development, there is a valuable opportunity to show the differences that libraries can make.

Through this, we can challenge narrow perceptions of what libraries are and can do, build support for our institutions and profession across governments, and build new partnerships that help us serve our communities better.

The 2024 High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) offered just such an opportunity, bringing together UN agencies, Member States and other stakeholders, focused on the steps needed to achieve sustainable development.

Made possible by a grant from Stichting IFLA Global Libraries (SIGL), IFLA was able to bring a delegation to the HLPF in order to pursue this goal.

Woman with blonde hair and a yellow jacket speaking into a microphone behind a row of benches
Maia Simonishvili intervening during Georgia’s Voluntary National Review

Stronger connections, stronger recognition

Our delegation was made up of Alejandro Santa (Argentina, IFLA Regional Council Chair), Loida Garcia Febo (IFLA Governing Board Chair), Saif Al Jabri (Oman, Chair, IFLA MENA Regional Division Committee), Kepi Madumo (South Africa), Namutenya Hamwaalwa (Namibia), and Maia Simonishvili (Georgia), with support from IFLA Headquarters.

Each of our delegates made the most of the opportunity to build new connections with their governments, engaging with Ambassadors, Ministers, senior officials and even some members of a royal family.

In addition, both Saif and Maia spoke on behalf of the wider stakeholder community during their countries’ Voluntary National Reviews, with the Omani respondent taking the time to highlight, in a plenary session, how Oman is investing in its libraries as part of its wider development policy.

The connections library representatives made will not only help advance national library advocacy efforts, but also ensure that more and more diplomats based in New York understand and value what their country’s libraries are doing.

Group of people with a UN and Argentinian flag
The IFLA Delegation with HE Mr Ricardo Logorio, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Argentina

Towards a Group of Friends of Libraries

Links with diplomats are a priority. A key goal for IFLA is to spread awareness and recognition of the contribution of libraries to achieving a wide variety of UN goals among the Member States represented there.

We made an important step forwards during this HLPF with the holding of a preparatory meeting for the creation of a Group of Friends of Libraries, kindly hosted by the Permanent Mission of Argentina and with the contribution of the Permanent Mission of Ireland.

While there are still some stages until the Group can formally be launched, this is a promising development which offers new possibilities to set out the role of libraries in achieving development goals.

You can read more about this work in our separate news story.

A man with a beard speaking into a microphone behind a table
Saif Al Jabri intervenes during the Voluntary National Review of Oman

A Goal for Culture

In our advocacy around the HLPF, a key argument for us is the need to establish a standalone culture goal in any future development agenda. In the meanwhile, we ask that they act as if this is the case already today in their implementation of the SDGs.

This is an important step, both to give culture, cultural actors and cultural policy the status of a key area of focus in development, and to ensure that the culture sector itself can feel a full sense of ownership of the Goals.

We pursue this work in the context of the Culture2030Goal campaign, of which IFLA is a founding member, alongside other global and regional cultural networks.

We were therefore proud to help develop the latest edition of the Campaign’s analysis of culture in Voluntary National Reviews of SDG implementation, which highlighted the great practice demonstrated in the Reviews of Austria, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Oman and Palau.

We were proud in particular to meet with the head of the Planning Secretariat of Ecuador to discuss the place of culture in overall development planning, and how this contributes to greater equity and policy effectiveness.

A woman asking a question in a workshop in a wood paneled room
Namutenya Hamwaalwa and Kepi Madumo

Looking ahead

In addition to the focus on achieving the SDGs by 2030, many discussions centred on the Summit of the Future, which will take place in September in New York. This will be a landmark event, looking to set an agenda for a more effective multilateral system in the years to come.

The highlight of the event will be the agreement of the Pact for the Future, a document listing actions that governments will take to achieve this goal.

In addition to important wider chapters about digital inclusion and the use of knowledge in decision-making, we are making the case for strong references to the role of culture – and ideally to a standalone goal – as well as to the role of open science in supporting development.

More broadly, we continue to make the case for a more joined-up approach to information and knowledge, with the Global Principles on Information Integrity (on which we will report soon) a useful starting point. Keep an eye on our website for more

IFLA would like to thank Stichting IFLA Global Libraries for the support that made this engagement possible, and to Alejandro, Loida, Saif, Kepi, Namutenya and Maia for their time and energy.